Sacred Dances, Ritual Secrets
by branded-beauty
Summary: The Yautja don't mind allowing the Blooded Machiko to run with the pack... too much. But the other human is too good of an opportunity to miss, even if she doesn't agree. In a time when the Hunters are at war, can an untold secret save the Predator's race
1. Chapter 1

** Note: This fanfic takes place after the novel Predator: Prey **

Predator and AvP belongs to 20th Century Fox Films. Edana is mine thou!

Prologue might be a bit dull, but I gotta have some history on the characters, as well as some info about Ryushi for those who didn't read the book. And if you haven't read the book there are some spoilers here but I'll try not to ruin it for ya ;). This story also assumes Hunter's Planet hasn't occurred yet, so consider it a transitional fic. I'm expecting this to be a rather long, detailed story so enjoy!

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Machiko Noguchi meditated silently beneath the deadly warm rays of the desert planet known as Ryushi. Her skin had long since become somewhat immune the UV rays which pelted the oven landscape and her skin had become a darker, more leather-like color for it. The tops of dreadlocks were somewhat bleached as well making her Asian strands appear a brownish hue.

The only music to her mediation was the continual grazing noises of her three rhynth, a sort of space cattle, as they chomped greedily at breakfast, as the dry wind which crackled in the background. Her eyes closed, Machiko allowed her mind to replay for the thousandth time her recent adventure on the planet.

Ryushi was an unbearably hot planet, out of the way, and quiet. Almost ideal for raising rhynth herds, which sold well in the food industry of the interactive world. For three years these colonist ranchers worked and devoted themselves to their herds. And everyone's hard work paid off- a gigantic ship called _The Lector _came to pick up the massive number of space cattle and haul them off to market. That's when things turned bad.

Meanwhile, a group of young Hunters came to the planet. Dachande, the brave and honorable Leader of the pack let loose a number of Alien eggs for his unblooded to hunt. Somehow, things turned the wrong way. Humans saw what they should not have seen. Infected rhynth boarded their deathbed and the parsite Alien spread like a virus. Secret which should have been told were not.

With the mistaken loss of their Leader, the unruly youngsters created a war against the colonists and soon an army of Aliens joined the battle. Only after Machiko allied with the great Dachande were the Aliens and few surving Hunters destroyed.

A smile passed the woman's lips as her thoughts strayed to Dachande. In his last breaths he had branded her with his mark- a symbol she now proudly bore upon her brow. He left her with only a signal of honor and a name in his tongue- Da'hdtou-di, a name she would later translate to "Small Knife".

"Hey Maaaaaa-CHE-kooooo!"

Noguchi exhaled and opened her eyes. No, she wasn't alone here. Edana's bubbling voice was a constant reminder of that. The Japanese woman simply watched the burning sunrise, she didn't need to respond for Edana to find her and assume the same Indian-style sitting position nest to her.

"Mediating again?"

"I was."

"That's dull stuff. What's the plan for today?" Typical Edana. Impatient and ready to go.

Edana had been sent to the same asundered planet, just shortly after Machiko. The company practically gift wrapped her with the words "You're new intern" scribbled on a little note card tied to a ribbon around her neck like a puppy. If you asked Noguchi, she would have guessed the immature woman had a rich daddy somewhere who bribed the CEOs of Chigusa Corporation to give his little girl an internship. That's probably why she was sent here- a place where she could learn and not cause any trouble with inexperience and stupidity.

Not that Edana was stupid. There was keenness to those grey eyes, a sort of hidden intellect. The nineteen-year-old had the type of on-the-spot capability to come up with last minute plans, sudden organization, and of course, she had a bag full of smart-elect and witty comeback remarks.

Edana's abilities ended up saving the colonists of Ryushi. Machiko would admit anytime, when she first met the young woman, she was not impressed. Extremely feminine, saucy, and brazen, and having no problem whatsoever using her body to her advantage against men, Noguchi's first thoughts were to send the intern right back to where she came from. But the girl latched onto Machiko and while she was by no means submissive, Edana did as told with enthusiasm and speed. Edana grew on her and became a close friend. Everyone grew fond of the girl- and where Machiko was cold and distant boss to ranchers, Edana made up for with amiability so their job could be completed. Both women used their independent-leader personalities to work together.

That one night of hell proved Edana's aptitude. Machiko desperately needed to get to the medical lab and then the Lector, leaving a herd of panicking colonists in an excuse of a fort to defend themselves. Ackland, the epitome of assholes, was causing his usual antagonism and not helping an already jumpy crowd. Edana marched right up and yelled to his face exactly what he needed to hear to shut the hell up and obey her. In seconds she had a room full of people under her command. Machiko beamed with pride for her "little sister figure" before taking leave. Edana led the remaining colonists to safety and out of harms way while Machiko saved the planet.

Machiko glanced at the woman who sat beside her. Looking into the sunrise, soft light played Edana's high cheekbones and dark, lean frame. Her hair was almost as black as Machiko's had once been and even as the girl sat the tresses piled on the sand around her butt. Long hair went out of fashion a long time ago and most women who wanted the length without the hassle implanted a new type of wig which could be removed at any time. Machiko had let her hair grow, and much to Edana's dismay, formed it into dreadlocks with clips decorating it, like Dachande's had been.

"Today we're going to run a few miles." Machiko grinned, already knowing what Edana's resonse would be.

"What?! I hate running," Edana turned to her mentor and slapped her hands to her bare knees, "Let's practice our _unique_ skills."

Machiko's smile dropped, "I don't think that's a good idea today." Edana wasn't talking about hand crafts or showy fighting tricks. Noguchi prided herself in her martial art abilities. Abilities she had perfect control over. Edana had an ability she had next to **no** control over. An ability _extremely_ rare ability which few people could claim.A deep, engraving secret only Machiko and a very select handful of people knew about and even Machiko wasn't suppose to know. Because of that secret, Edana had decided to stay on Ryushi with Machiko after every other human left.

"We must keep out bodies trim and our minds sharp. How about we practice with melee weapons?" No response. "Edana?" Machiko shift her gaze which had trailed to the grazing rhythm to her friend. Edana looked at the sky with a sort of focused and glazed look all at once. "Edana?"

"Do you see it?"

"See what?" Machiko's voice sounded bored as she followed Edana's line of vision. Little tart was probably playing a trick on her. "I don't see anything. Enough of this-"

"Shh… watch."

Noguchi let out a sigh to make obvious her frustration and focused on the light blue sky. Only wisps of clouds decorated the horizon. Wait… something _was_ there. A growing spec, followed by a black tail of smoke. Just a meteor… right? The object grew and it tumbled from the sky in a straight bee-line. The cracked earth rumbled a little when it made contact about a half a day's ride on a rhythm to the east.

The two women looked at each other. Edana's face had a wary, unreadable look. Machiko's face had a smirk.

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Yep….that's the prologue. I promise there will be more action! Feel free to R&R. I'm going to try to update at least once a week and reviews are mah fuel!


	2. Chapter 2

I don't own AvP or Predator.

Thank you, Minkutei, for my first review!!

**Chapter 2: Confession**

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Edana's long tresses patted atop the rhynth's hide with every jaunting stride. Machiko's own dreadlocks tapped her back with every step, the colored beads which she had decorated within her mane clacking out a beat to match the beast's movements. The two were riding out to investigate the crashed… whatever it was. Edana ran a hand through her hair to sweep it out of her face before deciding to pull it back into a ponytail at the base of her neck.

Edana was muttering something about the heat and wiping sweat off her breasts, but Machiko wasn't listening. She wasn't even paying attention to the temperature. She was entirely focused on the fading streak of smoke dissipating in the distance. That was no meteor. The dull glint it gave off when it fell, the hum in the air before it landed… Machiko had a good idea of what it was. It had to be a ship or something of the like. It couldn't be human though, right? All databases were alerted of the two women's presence on the desert planet, so a human ship should have landed closer….

"Um… hello? Ryushi to Machiko?" Edana waited for her day dreaming friend to respond before peeling a clod of dried mud off Daisy's neck and chunking it at the back of Machiko's head.

"What?!" The Japanese woman turned back to glare at the grinning girl and quickly regained her composure. The landing scene was a quarter mile away behind a plateau, close enough now to act serious. Noguchi halted her rhynth, "Let the girls scrounge around here for a bit, we're walking the rest of the way." With that she swung a leg over and leapt off her mount.

Edana was tempted to throw a snide complaint but opted against it- Machiko had a knack for making excellent decisions and Edana had a feeling something… strange… was going to happen. Noguchi was a little too eager to explore the meteor and Edana had a feeling the older woman wasn't speaking about what was going on in her mind. Edana gracefully slid off Daisy and landed without a sound, scratching her pet behind the ears before jogging to catch up with Machiko.

"There's something you're not telling me, 'Chiko. You wouldn't be _this_ interested in a fallen rock." Edana had a playful smirk, looking at her friend from the corner of her grey eyes. Maybe she could get her to fess up.

"Mmm. Shh." Then again, they would be at the site soon enough and Edana could find out on her own.

As the two closed the distance, Noguchi went into stealth mode. She slunk, crouched and poised as she moved. Edana had no idea what she hell the woman was doing, but mimicked the actions. This was probably some trick. Maybe it was a party from the company and Machiko was just messing with her. They approached the last ridge of cracked dirt and sand; Machiko fell to her belly and crawled the rest of the way with Edana a half-length behind her. The women peered over the sand. And were shocked by what they saw.

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Tek'neh bellowed curses at his hunting pack, lower mandibles spread aggressively, ordering each warrior a job. He was the Leader of his clan and the pack he traveled with was no mangy group of _ch'hkt-a _unbloods. He traveled with a few of the finest warriors of his clan. True, warriors typical hunted solo, but for this hunt Tek'neh had invited three others.

The desert planet seemed good enough to deposit the hard meat eggs on. The weather was favorable, the planet was away from the reaches of other intelligent life forms, and no other Yautja had used the planet in several decades. Excluding an unblooded pack out on chiva which had yet to return. They were currently presumed dead, or maybe they had changed planets without alerting the mother ship. Maybe Tek'neh would find them here. The ship's computer's had not been updated on the terrain, making the yellow planet's topography a challenge. It also led to technical difficulties. When the ship entered the atmosphere, the solar heat and other variables had conflicted with the ship's calibrations. Nothing serious, and of course nothing the warriors couldn't handle. The landing was just not as graceful as it should have been.

Tek'neh spat at N'ck-tha, the pilot, and cursed as he walked passed. The other male growled at him, but Tek'neh was examining the ship. It was fine, and as soon as it cooled it would be practically good as before.

"Release the egg-bearer" Tek'neh commanded to no one in particular. One of them would do it. He watched the pregnant robot roll down the ship's ramp and over a dune before it disappeared. It would travel a good ways before releasing the eggs near suitable hosts.

The Hunter was suddenly struck by the prying feeling of eyes bearing into him. He swung around, his wiry dreadlocks clacking against his armor. Behind his mask, he switched vision modes and scanned the perimeter. Thermal vision was useless- the planet was too hot. Tek'neh thought he spotted two black bumps duck behind a ridge and he stepped forward, growling low in his throat.

"Tek'neh. Have you spotted something?" Bor-krek stepped up beside him, also switching vision modes to scan the area. Bor-krek was a good warrior, and fell just under Tek'neh in the clan's hierarchy. Tek'neh continued to growl for a moment before falling silent and straightening himself. Maybe he was simply excited with the idea of running with his clan mates in hunt soon and on edge. "No." He turned to the ship, Bor-krek scanned the area once more before following.

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This time Edana was ahead of Machiko as the women ran back to their rhynth.

"What the hell was that? Were those more of those hunters?!" Edana slowed enough to match stride with Machiko. The other woman didn't respond, she appeared to be in deep thought. "That one almost spotted us! We need to alert someone Machiko or we're gonna be S.O.L.!"

Both women hopped on the rhynth and kicked them to a horribly clumsy run back towards home. Machiko had yet to say anything. And she didn't, not a word the entire way back. Edana continually looked back to make sure they weren't being followed. Once back at camp, the panting beasts were given some water and the two ran inside. Machiko paused to look up at her queen's skull before entering.

"Okay, first thing's first. We need to find a good place to hide until they leave…" Edana was throwing supplies into a bag at a nervous speed.

"Edana"

"I think I have enough water to last a few days, food also, maybe enough to last four days."

"Edana"

"What about the rhynth? We should hide the girls so they don't get hunted"

"EDANA!"

The young woman stood up straight and looked at Machiko with a puzzled expression.

"Edana, I'm going with them."


End file.
